The question is whether a multi-million dollar investment should be made to locate a neighborhood school at Pontiac Street near Anthony Blvd. Imagine Schools is launching a major survey blitz in the area to find out whether residents are interested in having a new public charter school in their neighborhood. If the community says yes, school organizers will ask Ball State University, which oversees public charter schools in Fort Wayne and throughout Indiana, for permission to locate Imagine Bridge Academy at 2001 E. Pontiac Street. Currently, Imagine operates two schools in Fort Wayne, Imagine MASTer Academy at 2000 N. Wells St., and Imagine on Broadway, 2320 Broadway.

“The process has already started,” says Ra’Chelle Spearman of Imagine Schools (pictured right). “We have people who have been distributing survey cards and letters to different organizations. I’ve personally taken information to my church and to people I know, and we’ve already gotten quite a few responses. We want to be able to present this information to Ball State as soon as possible.”

“So far, the responses I’ve gotten have been very positive. This is an opportunity to bring more life to the community.”

The property at 2001 E. Pontiac Street is the former Fruehauf Building which has been vacant for about two decades. If people living nearby agree that a school would be a positive addition to the neighborhood, and Ball State University gives final approval, Imagine would invest more than $4-million to renovate the building. The new school, consisting of three levels with eight classrooms per floor, could accommodate as many as 600 students. Initially, the school would serve students K-through 5th grade. Each year, the school would add one additional grade until it becomes a K-through 8th grade school.

However, while the prospect of putting a long-vacant building to a positive use might appear to be an obvious choice, a lack of understanding about charter schools in general, and questions about Imagine Schools in particular, might cause some residents concern.

Undoubtedly, one of the challenges facing organizers of the survey will be making sure people can sort fact from fiction when it comes to public charter schools.

Although some people mistakenly believe that charter schools are private schools, charter schools are actually public schools. Because they are funded by public tax dollars, students don’t pay tuition. Also important is the fact that public charter school enrollment is open to all children. There are no district boundaries. All Imagine public charter schools are tuition-free and offer transportation from locations throughout the city.

Additionally, charter schools are schools of choice. The choice of whether to send their children to a public charter school is 100% up to parents.

“Choice is so important because parents know their children best,” Spearman says. “Parents are able to choose the environment where they feel their child is best suited and will be able to grow in all areas.”

Like all public schools, charter schools are held to high academic standards. They are required to participate in state testing programs, hire certified teachers, and publish annual reports to the public. However, there is also a high expectation of accountability.

“One of the biggest questions I’m asked is whether charter schools are accountable,” Spearman says. “We are held accountable, not only by the Indiana Department of Education but by Ball State and also by Imagine Schools.” (Imagine Schools operates more than 70 schools in 11 states and the District of Columbia)

“A lot of people just don’t know much about charter schools so they stray away from them,” Spearman adds. “We’re in a position where we have an opportunity to not only share the great things that we’re doing but to also share information about the people who hold us accountable.”

According to the state’s charter law, an authorizer must oversee a public charter school in Indiana. That authorizer and the actual operator of the school sign a performance contract (the “charter” in charter schools) that spells out what the school will be expected to achieve in terms of academics, student enrollment, financial management and several other measures. The authorizer can shut down a charter school that fails to meet accountability standards for school operations, academic achievement and/or financial stability and sustainability.

Local examples of charter school accountability are not hard to find. In the most extreme outcome, by revoking or declining to renew a charter, an authorizer can effectively close a school. That’s what happened in 2004 when charter authorizer Ball State University pulled its sponsorship of Urban Brightest Community Academy citing lower than projected enrollment and financial problems.

A more recent local example of an authorizer holding a school’s feet to the fire happened earlier this year when questions were raised about the actions of the board of directors governing Imagine MASTer Academy. Ball State ordered the board to take immediate steps to ensure that its procedures and practices were transparent and open to the public. The board was also required to undergo intensive board governance training for current and prospective members, and to develop a policy manual clearly spelling out the expectations of board members. Taking the mandate seriously, the school board completed all of the required steps months ahead of schedule. (Editor’s note: INK editor Vince Robinson is an Imagine MASTer Academy board member and a past member of the organizing board of Imagine Bridge Academy)

While rigorous, the demands of increased accountability have their rewards for public charter schools and their students. In exchange for more rigorous accountability measures, public charter schools have more freedom to offer innovative approaches to teaching that can be tailored to the specific needs of individual students. According to Imagine Schools, that approach to meeting students at their individual level is what draws most parents to Imagine.

Ra’Chelle Spearman is uniquely qualified to help people better understand public charter schools in Fort Wayne. Her resume includes teaching at Timothy L. Johnson Academy, the city’s first public charter school. She also taught at Urban Brightest Community Academy during its year of operation. Spearman has been with Imagine Schools since starting on the ground floor with Imagine on Broadway, which recently completed its second school year. Spearman spent her first year at Imagine on Broadway as a third-grade teacher but by her second year she grew into the role of assistant school leader.

“At first I thought, ‘I’m leaving my babies in the classroom!’ That was my first thought,” Spearman says. “I didn’t want to leave them because you develop a relationship with your students. But (as assistant school leader), I’m now able to impact and have relationships with more students. It was scary at first, but it was a good transition for me. It’s a lot of fun.”

Spearman flatly rejects the notion that the growth of charter school signals a problem with traditional public schools. A Fort Wayne native, Spearman says proudly that she is a product of Fort Wayne Community Schools and she applauds the great things happening in FWCS under Superintendent Dr. Wendy Robinson. However Spearman explains that just as children (and adults) have different learning styles, there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to education.

“That’s why choice is so important, not just for the Bridge Academy but for all of our Imagine campuses,” Spearman explains. “We allow parents another option so that they can determine what is best for their child.”

“We create a safe learning environment where children can grow and blossom,” she adds. “When they come through our doors, it’s all about learning.”
“The promise of our school is that we’re going to meet your child where they are academically. We’re going to meet them at their level. Not only are we going to grow them academically but socially as well. We’re going to help them make good decisions. We want to grow good decision-makers. That’s what Imagine is all about.”

The Imagine Bridge Academy survey is being made available to families via a mailing of survey response cards, neighborhood canvassing, publication in newspapers and posting online at www.imagineschoolsindiana.com

For more information about Imagine Bridge Academy, contact Dianne Tulley at (260) 745-8395 or Dianne.tulley@imagineschools.com

Dr. Dennis J. Gayle

“I am delighted to be joining the executive team at Indiana Tech, a university that has exemplified best practice in the strategic deployment of learning and teaching modes, relationship-based education, and effective institutional management,” Dr. Gayle said.

“Dr. Gayle comes to Indiana Tech with outstanding experience as a faculty member, academic administrator and team-builder,” Indiana Tech President Dr. Arthur E. Snyder said. “Additionally, he has an impressive background as an international educator.”

Dr. Gayle earned his Ph.D. in International Political Economy and Master of Arts in Political Science at University of California-Los Angeles, a Master of Science in International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, English and Spanish at the University of the West Indies. Following a competitive national process, he was selected as a Fellow of the American Council on Education during the 1997-1998 academic year and subsequently completed several professional seminars at Harvard University’s Institute of Educational Management in 2001-2002.

Prior to becoming president of American InterContinental University, Dr. Gayle served as AIU’s vice president for academic affairs. His additional experience in higher education includes positions at University of North Florida, Florida International University and the University of Alabama.

Dr. Gayle is highly regarded for his expertise in international business, international economics, international marketing and organizational behavior.

“I’ve wanted to write this book for a long time… I wrote it from the heart.”

Literally decades in the making, John P. Dortch’s first book, In My Father’s House These Were The Rules, describes ten basic principles that lay the foundation for productive, thoughtful and spiritual living. Dortch says they are principles his parents instilled in him while growing up in the South. The new book is the product of the important lessons Dortch learned as a child as well as his later experiences that were shaped by those formative teachings.

“I would not be where I am today had I not grown up under those kinds of rules and principles,” Dortch says.

Raised in rural Alabama, Dortch was the youngest boy among 11 children. He considers himself blessed to have grown up in a home where he was loved and made to feel that he was somebody. He credits that nurturing of his self-esteem with keeping him away from crime and other negative behaviors. Although his parents, Clarence and Alice (James) Dortch, Sr. had limited schooling themselves, they made sure that all 11 children were well educated and spiritually grounded.

The principles outlined in the book are nothing new – keeping your word, being responsible and working hard are principles familiar to many adults, especially those of us beyond a certain age.

“We grew up in an environment where our parents and grandparents instilled those principles in us. Sometimes they didn’t have to say anything. With just a look that they gave you, you knew.”
However, Dortch believes that many of the problems people face in their lives today stem from the absence of those principles and the loss of that family support system to help reinforce the rules.

Dortch cites today’s rising rates of incarceration, low academic attainment and under-achievement as clear evidence that adherence to these important principles has eroded in too many homes. In a nutshell, we’ve become too lax as a community.

“I think we’re all guilty to a degree, and I put myself in that same boat,” Dortch explains. “What I see happening, primarily with young males – especially African American males – we’re losing them.”

Short of the more grave statistics of crime and violence, some of Dortch’s concerns about the state of young men comes from his experience raising his two daughters. He recalls the young males who knocked on his door when his daughters were dating.

“There was little understanding of what it meant to be responsible,” Dortch recalls. “Your word is your bond, but I often saw my daughters wait on guys who said they were going to come by at a certain time.

Dortch says the need to reintroduce and reinforce these age-old values is what inspired him to write his first book. He plans to follow it up with workshops aimed particularly to young boys and teens.
Not surprisingly, Dortch dedicates his new book to his father, Clarence Dortch, Sr., who passed away in 1983.  Dortch calls his father his “teacher, mentor, friend, confidante, and hero.” He credits his dad with teaching him everything he needed to live a spiritual, quality life. Dortch also dedicates the book to both his oldest brother, Clarence Dortch, Jr., whom John Dortch says he shared many conversations about their father’s teachings; and Kelly Eddins, Dortch’s friend of 40-years. Both Clarence Dortch, Jr. and Kelly Eddins passed away in 2008.

In the book, Clarence Dortch, Sr. is described as a disciplined, upright man who worked from sun up to sundown. Working as an inspector at a lumber plant, the elder Dortch labored hard to provide for his wife and 11 children while also looking toward the future. He managed to purchase a home and acquire dozens of acres of land for farming and livestock – property that remains in the family’s possession today. In fact, the family’s home is pictured on the cover of the book.

Although John P. Dortch achieved considerable success in corporate America and currently maintains several successful private business ventures, he laughingly describes himself as a “small town Alabama country boy.” While he might still be a country boy at heart, Dortch is also a self-described “type-A” personality – driven and always on the move. True to the rule Work Hard Every Day – Get Up Running, Dortch maintains a pace that would exhaust most people. He is owner and president of the Fort Wayne-based human relations firm The Preston Joan Group, LLC. Drawing upon Dortch’s extensive corporate HR experience, the company offers a wide range of services to help businesses large or small better manage their employees. Another business venture is Unique Touch Salon, an upscale barber and beauty salon. With its elegant appearance and professional atmosphere, the salon, which recently celebrated its first anniversary, attracts a diverse clientele from throughout the area. The energetic entrepreneur is also a partner in D.K.J. Holdings, LLC and The Pontiac Group, LLC.

In addition to serving on several local boards and commissions, Dortch’s business savvy prompted Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry to appoint him as an advisor. Dortch serves as co-chair of the Southtown Area Advisory Committee (along with Southtown McDonald’s restaurant owner Ted Williams), a group of business and community leaders looking for ways to jumpstart commercial and economic development near Southtown Centre.

In the midst of Dortch’s numerous business and civic endeavors, he still finds time for his church. Mindful of the rule Being Spiritual Keeps You Grounded, Dortch is a longtime member of Turner Chapel A.M.E. where he serves as president of the Sons of Allen, vice-chair of the Trustee Board, and teaches Sunday school.

While In My Father’s House These Were The Rules is his first book, Dortch is no stranger to writing. In addition to writing poetry, Dortch has written extensively for newspapers and business magazines in the region, and created and delivered presentations for companies and civic groups. Even so, he says the discipline required for  successfully writing and publishing a book along with editing, layout, graphics and other technical considerations took things to another level. So far, the response has been gratifying.

“Anyone reading this book will have a stronger foundation in all the important areas of life,” Win Moses comments about the book. The current Indiana State Representative and former Fort Wayne mayor calls Dortch “a careful observer of how discipline and hard work and thoughtfulness determine the paths of our lives.”

“I am getting outstanding comments about the book,” Dortch says. “I’ve been surprised.”

Currently Dortch is busily promoting the book through personal appearances and book signings.

In My Father’s House These Were the Rules by John P. Dortch is available for $9.95 at Community Care Pharmacy, 2700 Lafayette St., and Mitchell Books, 6360 W. Jefferson Blvd. in the Covington Plaza in southwest Fort Wayne. You can also order the book online at www.johndortchbooks.com